As hand-held computers are becoming ubiquitous, more and more people are saving a wide variety of information in electronic documents. Advantageously, many computers no longer require a user to employ a keyboard to save information in an electronic document. Instead, these computers now allow a user to handwrite or draw information (sometimes also referred to as content) directly onto the electronic “paper” of an electronic document with a pen or stylus. The electronic paper offered by these computers is thus quickly becoming a substitute for handwriting information onto conventional paper, even for users that cannot type.
One significant advantage that electronic documents have over conventional paper documents is that space can be inserted anywhere in the document, even if the desired location already contains content. The user can simply indicate the position where he or she wishes the additional space to be inserted, and the computer will move the objects in the document below that position by a sufficient amount to insert the desired space. For example, if the user is taking notes, and wishes to insert an additional comment between two existing notes, the user can simply insert the space required to write the additional comment. Similarly, a user can easily delete empty space from a document, to reduce its size. The computer will then move the objects below the deleted space upward to fill the gap left by the deleted space.
In some situations, however, it may be difficult for a user to accurately gauge which objects will be moved when space is inserted into or deleted from a document. When the document is made up of lines of typewritten text, the user can select a position between typewritten lines where space is to be inserted or deleted. This allows a user to precisely control which typewritten lines of text will be moved when the space is inserted or deleted. If the document contains handwritten electronic ink or drawings, on the other hand, then it may be difficult for the user to know with certainty which objects will be moved when space is inserted or deleted.
For example, FIG. 7 illustrates a portion of a document containing handwritten characters in electronic ink 701. In particular, this document portion includes one handwritten line containing the word “for” 703 and a second handwritten line containing the word “that” 705. If the user wishes to insert space at position 707, this position horizontally corresponds to the overlap between the letter “f” in the word “for” 703 and the letter “t” in the word “that” 705. Thus, the user may be uncertain as to whether the word “for” 703 will be shifted downward if space is inserted at position 707. Of course, while the example provided in FIG. 7 is relatively simple, a document containing a number of different drawings, handwritten lines at different angles, or more overlap between handwritten lines would pose an even more difficult problem in determining which objects will be moved if space is inserted or deleted.
Accordingly, there is a need for a space tool that provides feedback to clearly identify for the user which objects will be moved if space is inserted or deleted. More particularly, there is a need for a space tool that provides feedback that accurately informs the user as to which objects will be moved if space is inserted at or deleted from a position designated by the user, while the user still has an opportunity to change that position.